The Era of Amalgamations

The commercial possibilities of Lord Beaverbrook's newspapers have not yet been tested. Judged by the rapid expansion which they have made in recent years and the volume of advertising which they carry it is a fair assumption that if the intensive development policy were discontinued these journals would be next to the Associated Newspapers in earning capacity.

Daily Chronicle Group.

The Daily Chronicle Investment Corporation Trust was formed in July 1927 to take over the properties of the United Newspapers (1918) Ltd., with a capital of L3,050,000 consisting of £800,000 7% first cumulative pref erence shares, £700,000 8% second cumulative preference shares, £1,400,000 ordinary shares, LI each, and 3,000.00o deferred shares of i/– each. The corporation owns the Daily Chronicle, the Sunday News, the Edinburgh Evening News, the Yorkshire Evening News, and the Doncaster Gazette.

In July 1928 after the death of Sir David Yule and the retire ment of Sir Thomas Catto, their interests were acquired by Mr. William Harrison on behalf of the Inveresk Paper Co., Ltd., of which he was chairman. Mr. Harrison had previously entered the newspaper field by acquiring the Lancashire Daily Post, Preston, and an interest in the Hull Daily Mail and Grimsby Telegraph. Besides his interests in daily newspapers, Mr. Harrison, as al ready mentioned, is chairman of Illustrated Newspapers, Ltd., which own nearly a dozen illustrated and trade papers. Mr. Har rison also controls most of the paper-making mills in Great Britain outside of newsprint mills.

The Starmer Group.

This is an association of 32 provincial newspapers with London headquarters at Newspaper house. The founders were the Rowntree family and Sir Charles Starmer, who began his newspaper career on the Northern Echo (Darlington). With the Rowntrees and Lord Cowdray, he built up this group, which includes the Northern Echo, Sheffield Independent, Shef field Mail, Nottingham Evening News, Nottingham Journal, Birm ingham, Gazette, Yorkshire Observer, Yorkshire Gazette, Brad ford Telegraph and Argus, Birmingham Evening Dispatch, Lin colnshire Chronicle, and a number of weeklies. The Westminster Gazette (morning paper) belonged to this group until its merg ing with the Daily News in Feb. 1928.

Other Combinations.—A financial group was promoted in July 1928 comprising the Financial News, the Investors' Chron icle, half interest in the Economist, the Banker, and the Liverpool Journal of Commerce, with a share capital of £55o,000. One condition was that the editorship of the Economist should always be independent. The promoters of the issue were the printing firm of Messrs. Eyre and Spottiswoode.

Among the largest combinations of newspaper properties out side the big combines may be mentioned: The Liverpool Daily Post and Echo Ltd., which owns the Daily Post, Liverpool Echo, Liverpool Courier and Express—all the newspapers in the city and neighbourhood.

The Consolidated Newspapers, Ltd., belonging to Sir Leicester Harmsworth, owns the Western Morning News, the Mercury, and the Evening Herald, Plymouth—the only morning and eve ning papers in that town—an evening paper in Exeter, and one in Torquay. In the summer of 1928 Sir Leicester Harmsworth acquired the Field, the Queen, and the Law Times.

The

Glasgow Herald (Outram & Co.) Ltd., of Glasgow, with the Bulletin (an illustrated morning paper), the Evening Times, and the Citizen.

D. C. Thomson & Co., Ltd., own all newspapers and publica tions in Dundee, including the only morning and the only evening paper in that city, a Sunday newspaper, and a large number of weeklies.

The Yorkshire Conservative Newspaper Co., Ltd., are the pro prietors of the Yorkshire Post, including Yorkshire Evening Post, and Leeds Mercury.

Anglo-Foreign Newspapers, Ltd., formed in Jan. 1929, has acquired interests in various newspapers and trade journals.

Organisations.

A net-work of organisations exists for em ployers and workers. In the newspaper business collective bar gaining is the rule. On the employers' side, there is the Newspaper Proprietors' Association, which represents the London press, the Newspaper Society for the provincial press, the Scottish News paper Proprietors' Association, and the Irish Newspaper Society. There is also the British Trade and Technical Trade Journals Organisation.